Refrigerator-door latch



c. R. CHENERY.

REFRIGERATOR DOOR LATCH.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 1, 1919.

1,381,799." Patented June 14, 1921,

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

REFRIGERATOR-DOOR LATCH.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 14, 1921.

Application filed April 1, 1919. Serial No. 286,644.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES R. CHENERY, a citizen of the United States, residing at- Buffalo, in the countyof Erie and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Refrigerator-Door Latches; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to latches for refrigerator doors and the primary object of the invention is to provide an improved latch, which is so constructed that when the same is moved to unlatch the door, it will tend to force open the door, thereby facilitating the openng of the door.

It is ofttimes extremely difficult to open arefrigerator or cold storage door, owing to the fact that the door is so constructed as to wedge into a closed position and also 0wing to the fact that a thin film of ice is liable to form at this point and to overcome this difficulty, an object of the invention is to construct means in combination with the ordinary latch to force the door open beyond the wedging or sealing portion thereof.

A further object of the invention is to provide a refrigerator door lock including a keeper having an upwardly inclined surface which is adapted to be engaged by the latch bar when the same is thrown downward to operate the latch, so that the latching lever engaging the inclined edge will tend to force open the door.

A still further object of the invention is to provide an improved device of the above character, which is durable and efficient in use, one that is simple and easy to manufacture, and one that can be placed upon the market at a reasonable cost.

With these and other objects in view, the invention consists in the novel construction, arrangement and formation of parts, as will be hereinafter more specifically described, claimed and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, forming a part thereof, in which:

Figure 1 is a front elevation illustrating the improved latch applied to a refrigerator door.

Fig. 2 is a horizontal section through the door and latch.

Fig. 3 is an end elevation of the improved latch.

Referring to the drawings in detail, Wherein similar reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several views, the numeral 10 generally indicates the improved latch, which includes the base plate 11, secured to the door 12 of a referigerator 13. The opposite side of the door 12 is provided with a bearing plate 14, and this plate and the base plate 11 and the door 12 are provided with alined apertures for rotatably receiving the spindle 15 upon which is secured intermediate the ends thereof the locking bolt 16 which extends beyond and across the edge of the door 12. The opposite end of the handle 16 is formed relatively short and is bent outwardly and away from the door, as at 17, and rounded to form a hand grip 18. By bending the handle outward from the door, it forms means for permitting the hand to readily grasp the handle without engaging and coming in contact with the outer surface of the door. The inner end of the spindle is also provided with an operating handle 19, which permits the bolt to be readly actuated from the inside of the refrigerator, as is often necessary.

A keeper 20 is secured by means of bolts or other suitable fastening elements 21 to the outer surface of the wall of the refrigerator 13 and the keeper includes the base plate 22. having the outstanding vertically disposed rib 23, the outer surface of which is gradually inclined downwardly from the upper surface thereof toward the lower end which is provided with an upwardly and outwardly inclined arm 24, which extends substantially to the central portion of the rib, which forms means for retaining the locking bolt 16 in position when the door is closed.

The extreme upper end of the arm 24L is provided with a downwardly inclined extension 25, which forms means for guiding and swinging the locking bolt on its pivot, when the door is closed, so as to facilitate the positioning of the locking bolt behind the arm 24. A suitable brace 26 is formed at the meeting portion of the arm 24 and the extension, so as to suitably strengthen the a sufficient leverage to permit the easy operation of the locking bolt.

The inner end of the locking bolt is provided with a cutout portion 27 which receives the roller 28, mounted upon the stud or pin 29, extending through the cutout portion and secured in the walls thereof. This roller permits the easy operation of the locking bolt.

To normally hold the inner end of the locking bolt behind the arm 24-, an eXpan-- sion spring 30 1s coiled around a guide arm 31 secured to the inner end of the bolt and this rod extends substantially at right angles thereto. The upper end of the spring engages an outstanding rib 32 secured to the, upper surface of the base plate 11 and this rib is provided with a slot for receiving the bolt, so as to form a guide for the same, when the bolt is thrown downward. This rod 31 is threaded into the inner end of the bolt, which is provided with aninternally threadedbore to receive the same'and the rod can be readily removed and placed on either side of the bolt so as to permit the same to be readily used on right and left hand doors. A guide strap 33 is secured to the forward edge of the pla'teby suitablev fasteningelements 34; and the strap form's means for guiding the locking bolt 16 during the operation thereof.

'It also can be seen, that the latch can be readily used on doors of the overlap 'aing or flush type.

In practice, I have found that the form of my invention illustrated in the accompanydescription, as the preferred embodiment, is the most efficient andp'ractical; yet realizing the conditions concurrent with the adop-- 111g drawings and referred to in the above any of the advantages of my invention as set forth.

What I claim as new is:

A. refrigerator door latch and opener comprising the combination with a refrigerator door and door frame, of a shaft mounted for rotation in said door, a plate engaged upon each face of said door and forming a bearing for said shaft, a handle formed on the inner end of said shaft and having its main portion offset from the inner face of the door, a second "handle mounted on the outer end of said shaft and rigidly connccted therewith, said second handle having its main portion offset from the outer face of said door to form a hand grip, a latch carrying extension formed with the second mentioned handle and directed oppositely thereto, said latch carrying extension having a cutout. portion adjacent its free end, a roller mounted in said cutout portion, said latch carrying extension having an increased apertured portion inwardly of said roller, a pin threaded in said enlarged aperturcd portion and extended upwardly, a rib carried by the plate positioned upon the outer face of said door, said pin being extended through an elongated slot of said rib, a spring positioned on said pin between said latch carrying extension and said rib to resiliently retain the latch carrying extension downwardly in a horizontal plane, and a keeper mounted on said door frame and provided with an outwardly extended vertical rib having a downwardly inclined slot formed therein with one wall of the slot separated from the main portion of the rib intermediate the ends of the slot and turned downwardlywhereby the roller may ride in said slot to force the door into closed position in said door frame, said roller being adapted to force the door into closed posi tion in said door frame, said roller being adapted to force the door outwardly when raised in the 'slot of the keeper, said plate and the outer face of the door being pro vided with a guide for thelatc'h carrying extension.

, In testimony whereof I afiix my signature in presence of twowitnesses.

CHARLES R. GHENERY.

WALTER J. T'TURGAARD, G. KoUNrz. 

